[Dean's World] Mary Madigan: Moderates, Allies and Islamophobes

[notify at powerblogs.com]

Posted by Mary Madigan:
Moderates, Allies and Islamophobes
http://www.deanesmay.com/posts/1159811117.shtml


   There's been a lot of debate lately, on [1]Dean's World and elsewhere,
   about whether critics of Islam are allies the war against terrorism.
   There has also been a lot of debate about whether [2]critics of Islam
   are Islamophobes.

   It's the sort of debate that can go on forever, unless you invoke a
   higher authority; no, I'm not going to use the Koran - this is still
   America, after all, and the Koran is not considered to be a legal
   document. In fact, our Constitution forbids the use of the Koran as a
   legal document. Therefore, the only higher authority I can legally
   invoke is the American government.

   Through their actions, (ie. arrests, charges of criminal activity,
   etc), who does the Amercan government consider to be an ally in the
   war against terrorism - and who do they consider to be an enemy?

   Here's a quick quiz *

   1. Tariq Ramadan - one of [3]Time Magazine's 100 Innovators, Ramadan
   is praised as a true moderate by American leftists and by his many
   [4]pious Muslim followers.

   [5]According to the ACLU: "Professor Ramadan has been a consistent
   critic of terrorism and those who use it. In October 2001, Professor
   Ramadan publicly deplored the September 11 attacks, saying to fellow
   Muslims, "Now more than ever we need to criticize some of our brothers
   . . . You are unjustified if you use the Koran to justify murder."

   Does the American government consider Tariq Ramadan to be a ally or an
   enemy?

   2. [6]Ayaan Hirsi Ali. She is a politician, prominent author, film
   maker, and critic of Islam. She collaborated with Theo Van Gogh to
   produce a film critical of Islam, [7]Submission. Theo Van Gogh was
   assassinated as a result of that collaboration.

   She has admitted to making false statements in her 1992 application
   for asylum in the Netherlands. During the Iraqi invasion of Iran, she
   sympathised with Iran and the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood. After she
   achieved asylum, she "saw firsthand the way certain practices she
   thought she had left behind in Africa continued in the West." She
   became very critical of the way the Dutch system handled asylum
   seekers. Islamophobia-watchers blame her for "stoking up anti-Muslim
   hysteria in the Netherlands" with statements about [8]the violence
   that is inherent in Islam.

   Other [9]Islamophobia watchers say that:

     Demonizing Islam simply solidifies the suspicions of the pious
     middle, and renders would be reformers like Hirsi Ali..completely
     irrelevent, and even offensive, to muslim audiences, the very
     people who need to change the practice!

   Does the American government consider Ayaan Hirsi Ali to be an ally or
   an enemy?

   3. Randall Todd Royer, former civil rights coordinator for the Council
   on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). He was also an active blogger,
   essayist and paintball hobbyist. His articles included a plea to
   respect religion in the public square, a call for détente between
   Islam and the West and an article urging Muslims to avoid wallowing in
   victimization.

   Royer's organization, [10]CAIR, holds this as one of their core
   principles

     CAIR condemns all acts of violence against civilians by any
     individual, group or state.

   Does the American government consider CAIR's Randall Todd Royer to be
   an ally or an enemy? Does the American government consider CAIR itself
   to be an ally or an enemy?

   4. [11]Wafa Sultan acheived fame for taking part in Al Jazeera's
   weekly 90-minute discussion program The Opposite Direction, for her
   debate with host Faisal al-Qasim and with Dr. Ibrahim Al-Khouli about
   Samuel P. Huntington's Clash of Civilizations theory.

   Due to some of her statements, including this:

     The Islamic religious teachings have incited to the rejection of
     the other, to the denial of the other, and to the killing of the
     other.

   ...Ms. Sultan has been criticized by civil rights activists like
   [12]CAIR's [13]Ibrahim Hooper for leaving the Muslim faith: According
   to moderates like Mr. Hooper, Ms. Sultan's words are a slap in the
   face to all pious Muslims.

   Ms. Sultan's praise of Western culture vs. Islam was criticized
   through the use of violent passages found in the Bible in this post,
   [14]Wafa Sultanâs Lies Refuted. Clearly, she does offend some Muslims.

   Does the American government consider Wafa Sultan to be an ally or an
   enemy?

   * answers coming soon.

References

   1. http://www.deanesmay.com/posts/1159404710.shtml
   2. http://www.deanesmay.com/posts/1158614167.shtml
   3. http://www.time.com/time/innovators/spirituality/profile_ramadan.html
   4. http://www.aqoul.com/archives/2006/05/the_pious_middl.php
   5. http://www.aclu.org/safefree/general/23588res20060124.html
   6. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayaan_Hirsi_Ali
   7. http://www.ifilm.com/ifilmdetail/2655656
   8. http://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2006/5/21/more-on-ayaan-hirsi-ali.html
   9. http://quantumghosts.blogspot.com/2006/10/jihaadi-taxonomy.html
  10. http://www.cair.com/default.asp?Page=corePrinciples
  11. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wafa_Sultan
  12. http://www.cair-net.org/default.asp?Page=articleView&id=40952&theType=NB
  13. http://www.hyscience.com/archives/2006/07/moderate_cairs_1.php
  14. http://www.answering-christianity.com/bassam_zawadi/wafa_sultan.htm